AEW Dynamite Review - August 3, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Jay Lethal def. Orange Cassidy

Lethal challenging Wardlow for the AEW TNT Championship appeared to be the direction they were headed in after last week's Rampage, so it was logical for Lethal to beat the last man who Wardlow beat to retain his title in Cassidy. There was a clash of styles here, but it was actually quite the entertaining affair with Cassidy looking credible in defeat as always. I'm not sure who views Lethal as a legitimate threat to Wardlow coming off Lethal's loss to Samoa Joe at Death Before Dishonor a few weeks ago, but I'm looking forward to that championship clash at Battle of the Belts III, nonetheless.

"Hangman" Adam Page Saved The Young Bucks From Adam Cole and reDRagon

This segment was billed as the return of Undisputed Elite as Cole, Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish have all been out injured for the last month or two. Cole mentioned that he and O'Reilly weren't currently medically cleared to compete, but I don't know if that was a work or not. I thought this would be another one of those segments where stuff is said but nothing actually happens, but I was happy to have been wrong. We finally got Cole and his boys turning on Young Bucks, cementing the latter duo's face turn in the process. Page making the save was wonderful storytelling if you've been paying attention to what they've been doing recently. Do Young Bucks team with Page in the tournament to crown inaugural AEW Trios World Champions or does Kenny Omega return before then?

Jamie Hayter and Britt Baker def. AEW Women's World Champion Thunder Rosa and Toni Storm

Rosa and Baker just wrapped up their rivalry a few months ago, so it felt too soon for them to be back in the ring together despite always having strong in-ring chemistry. Other than that, this was a hell of a match with all four women putting forth a fantastic effort. The action was fast-paced and I loved that they worked with such a sense of urgency. Hayter pinning Storm for the victory was a pleasant surprise and now she has an opportunity at the title waiting for her at Battle of the Belts III.

Powerhouse Hobbs def. Ren Jones

Taz officially declared before this bout that Team Taz is no more. I mean, we figured that'd be the case after Hobbs attacked Starks last week, but that doesn't change how wasted they were as a group and so much more could have been done with them during their time together. On that note, I'm looking forward to this feud between Hobbs and Starks based on the little we've seen so far. Hobbs completely killed his unknown opponent and Starks received a great babyface reaction upon running out to brawl with Hobbs. I just fear AEW won't know what to do with either of them once this runs its course (see: Brian Cage).

Christian Cage def. Matt Hardy

These two originally faced off one-on-one in AEW last summer, and obviously they had many more matches prior to that in WWE. I didn't have high hopes for it going in considering they're in the twilight of their respective careers, but this ended up being a well-worked matchup with nice showings from both men. They could have even trimmed off a few minutes and I wouldn't have minded. Christian's feud with Jungle Boy is easily the best storyline going in AEW right now.

Stokley Hathaway Recruited "All Ego" Ethan Page

This is the sort of stuff that bugs me about AEW that no one else is willing to admit. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for Page getting television time and ranting about not getting any normally (those were likely legitimate frustrations), but where the hell was Scorpio Sky and Dan Lambert? I've never cared for their little group, but it should at least be explained why they weren't out there with him. Apparently, Page is ditching Lambert for Hathaway. Hopefully that alliance will fare better for him because he has mostly meant nothing so far. If you can remember the last time he won a singles match on Dynamite, you're lying to yourself.

The Acclaimed def. Gunn Club (Austin and Colten Gunn) in a Dumpster Match

This was meant to serve as a tribute to the Dumpster match The New Age Outlaws had with Terry Funk and Cactus Jack way back when in 1998. I don't believe there have been too many of them since then, though I vaguely recall Kalisto score a fluke win over Braun Strowman in a random Dumpster match on Raw in 2017. At any rate, the stipulation was silly, but they made the most of it. If nothing else, the crowd was into it and The Acclaimed won as they should have, so I can't complain.

Chris Jericho def. ROH Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta (Non-Title)

Jericho's title shot at the AEW Interim World Championship for next week was on the line. Did viewers have any reason to believe Jericho would lose one week before he challenges Jon Moxley? Absolutely not, but they had a well-wrestled main event, regardless. Yuta consistently rises to the occasion against the top talent and Jericho looked better here than he has in some of his other recent matches. It served as solid setup for Moxley vs. Jericho.

Overall Show

We had Fyter Fest for two weeks on Dynamite followed by Fight for the Fallen last week and now we have Quake by the Lake coming up next week. Why are we getting more "special" editions of Dynamite than we are regular episodes? Are they really all that special at that point when they happen on an almost weekly basis and there isn't anything out of the ordinary about them? This edition in particular didn't do much for me, personally. There was nothing egregiously bad about it, but it drove home how they need more compelling storylines to make the show feel more must-see from week to week. Dynamite has lost a bit of its luster due to all the injuries and most people are in placeholder programs. This show held my interest as always, but the two hours weren't nearly as thrilling as they have been in the past.

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